The Hawaiian Legacy Reforestation Initiative is planting a native forest on Hawai'i Island.

Located on the slopes of Mauna Kea, this historic site was once a majestic koa forest and the personal property of King Kamehameha I, the 1st King of Hawai'i. Sadly the land was cleared nearly a century ago to make room for farming and ranching. Fortunately, some of the old growth Koa trees reside on the property. HLRI is utilizing these trees as the seedsource for all Legacy Trees in an effort to return this tropical forest to its former glory.

Through our proprietary integrated technology, each tree has a RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification) tag with GPS tracking that provides a unique signature and includes the sponsor’s name, honoree, date planted, and the location of the tree. Using your coordinates you’ll be able to go online and zoom in on the area your tree is planted using applications like Google Earth.

Now you can plant your own legacy by taking our one-of-a-kind Legacy Tree Planting Ecotour. Recently awarded "Best Tour Operator" by the Hawaii Ecotour Association, the Legacy Tour is a must for any visitor to the island of Hawai'i.

Although ʻiʻiwi are still fairly common on most of the Hawaiian islands, they are rare on Oʻahu and Molokai and no longer found on Lānaʻi. Most of the decline was from loss of habitat, as native forests were cleared for farming, grazing, and development.

The palila (Loxioides bailleui) is a critically endangered finch-billed species of Hawaiian honeycreeper. It has a golden-yellow head and breast, with a light belly, gray back, and greenish wings and tail. The bird has a close ecological relationship with the māmane tree (Sophora chrysophylla), and became endangered due to destruction of the trees and accompanying dry forests.

The ʻakiapōlāʻau (Hemignathus munroi), is a species of Hawaiian honeycreeper, that is endemic to the island of Hawaii. Its the only bird species on the island to occupy the woodpecker niche. The bird is 5.5 inches in length, and has an unusually curved beak. It feeds on insects which are found hidden within the branches of the trees. It also feeds on the nectar of flowers shaped like its bill.

The ʻalalā or Hawaiian crow is a species of bird in the crow family, Corvidae. It is about the size of the carrion crow at 19–20 in, but with more rounded wings and a much thicker bill. The last two known wild individuals of this species disappeared in 2002; the species is now classified as Extinct in the Wild by the IUCN Red List. Approximately 115 individuals remain in two captive breeding facilities.

The Hawaiʻi ʻamakihi is a species of honeycreeper. It is found on the Big Island, Maui, and Molokaʻi in Hawaii. It formerly occurred on Lānaʻi where it was last seen in 1976. It is one of the most common honeycreepers, inhabiting all types of habitat on the islands. Of all the forest birds native to Hawaii, the Hawaiʻi ʻamakihi has been affected the least by habitat changes.

The ʻiʻiwi's feathers were highly prized by Hawaiian aliʻi (nobility) for use in decorating ʻahuʻula (feather cloaks) and mahiole (feathered helmets), and such uses gave the species its scientific name: vestiaria, which comes from the Latin for "clothing", and coccinea meaning "scarlet-colored".

The 'Io or Hawaiian hawk is a raptor of the Buteo genus endemic to Hawaiʻi, currently restricted to the Big Island. The ʻIo is the only hawk that is native to Hawaiʻi, and fossil evidence indicates that it inhabited the island of Hawaiʻi, Molokaʻi, Oʻahu, and Kauaʻi at one time. Today, it is known to breed only on the Big Island, in stands of native ʻōhiʻa lehua trees.

Pueo inhabit forests and grasslands throughout the islands of Hawaii, although their numbers are declining rapidly, particularly in the last two decades, and especially on the island of Oahu, upon which they were at one time very prevalent. Pueo is listed by the state of Hawaii as an endangered species on the island of Oahu.

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Planting 1.3 Million Trees

Hawaiian Legacy Reforestation Initiative

PO Box 22435 Honolulu, HI 96823

info@legacytrees.org

Toll-Free:

1-844-REFOREST

Phoenix Award Winner for Excellence in Sustainability and Conservation